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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25926520">Made To Be</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellerkay/pseuds/ellerkay'>ellerkay</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Vampire Diaries (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Compulsion, Cunnilingus, Emotional Baggage, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Female Reader, First Time, Insecurity, Kissing, Light Bondage, Light Dom/sub, Mildly Dubious Consent, Penis In Vagina Sex, Reader-Insert, Teasing, growing relationship, reassurance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 04:28:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,880</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25926520</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellerkay/pseuds/ellerkay</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Damon meets a woman in a coffee shop and takes her home, intending only to have a fun one-off. But, to the surprise of both of them, she has a dominant side. They both feel more for each other than they expected, but can she forgive him for the way things began?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Damon Salvatore/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>57</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Made To Be</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Title taken from the song "Sigh No More" by Mumford &amp; Sons.</p><p>This is a rather non-traditional reader insert, being third person limited from Damon's POV. And I'm never sure if my "reader" characters feel too much like OCs. However, I leave the woman in this story purposefully unnamed, and the idea is for the reader to be able to imagine themselves in her shoes should they so choose. I hope it's successful and/or that it provides enjoyment for anyone who cares to give it a try.</p><p>PLEASE NOTE: There are consent issues in this fic. The woman/reader is under TVD vampire compulsion the first time she and Damon have sex (though she is NOT compelled to have sex with him). I tried to make this dubious consent as mild as possible - the woman wants to be doing everything she's doing and the compulsion has in some ways freed her up to do it. However, she is still compelled and has complicated/upset feelings about what happened once the compulsion is removed. This is NOT an example of consent that would be acceptable in real life. Readers who are particularly sensitive to consent issues may want to pass this story by.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Damon wasn’t entirely sure what caught his eye about the woman in the coffee shop sitting with her nose buried in a book. After gazing at her for a moment from where he was standing at the counter, he decided it was probably her smile, which he’d glimpsed as she giggled softly at whatever she was reading.</p><p>“Give me one of what she’s got, too,” he told the barista.</p><p>Damon felt certain he’d been right to approach her when he sat on the end of the couch near her and held out a cup of earl grey.</p><p>“I thought you could use another one,” he said.</p><p>She looked up and flushed deeply when she got a look at him.</p><p>“Oh! Thanks!” she said, taking the tea. She held it for a moment, then put it down. “I’ve still got some left, but…thank you.”</p><p><i>Cautious.</i> Damn. He’d seen her finish the one she’d bought. Well, he would see what he could do. “You know, this place is known for its coffee.”</p><p>“I’m not much of a coffee drinker,” she said. “I like it every now and then. But mostly I’m a tea lady.”</p><p>“Do you have a name, tea lady?”</p><p>She gave it to him.</p><p>He put his hand out. “Damon.”</p><p>She really did have a very nice smile. Damon grinned back, letting his appreciation and interest show in his eyes, and asked what she was reading.</p><p>***</p><p>They ended up talking for over an hour. Damon didn’t even realize it until he glanced at the clock on the wall during a lull in the conversation. He blinked. He’d meant to talk with her for fifteen minutes, maybe half an hour. He didn’t usually need more, although sometimes, it was fun to draw it out. She had been fun – a little awkward sometimes, but not bad. It was more endearing than off-putting.</p><p>This was enough, though. He leaned in and put his hand on hers. “Want to see where I live?” he asked in a low voice. “I have this great old house. You’d love it.”</p><p>She hesitated, an apprehensive expression flashing over her features. <i>No</i>, damn it. He’d promised himself a treat, and it wasn’t like he was planning to hurt her. Well, not seriously. He’d heal her after drinking her blood. He just wanted to have a decent day and forget about all the bullshit which constantly plagued his life.</p><p>He should have known it wouldn’t be that easy. She wasn’t the type. She still hadn’t touched the tea he’d brought her the whole time they were talking.</p><p>“Don’t be afraid,” Damon said quickly, vehemently. It wasn’t until her eyes dilated and her shoulders relaxed that he realized he’d compelled her.</p><p>She hesitated another moment, head tilted as she studied him. “Okay,” she said. “Show me your cool house. But it had better be awesome.” She flashed him a grin and slipped her book into her bag.</p><p>As they walked couple blocks to where Damon had parked his car, she began petting the sleeve of his jacket.</p><p>“I love leather,” she said. “Let me try this on.” There was hardly even a question in her tone, and Damon found himself automatically shrugging out of the jacket. She handed him her bag to hold.</p><p>“Looks good,” Damon said, when she had it on.</p><p>“It’s a little long in the arms,” she replied. She hugged herself. “But I like the way it feels on me.” Her eyes were mischievous. Damon grinned. She’d really turned up the flirting since they’d left the coffee shop. All her shyness had dropped away. He liked her even more.</p><p>***</p><p>At the boarding house, she oohed and aahed over the library, scanning the shelves with evident excitement and pulling a few books down to examine them more closely. Damon watched her, a little charmed by her enthusiasm, although he told himself he was just watching her body move as she reached for the books.</p><p>“Can we light a fire?” she asked.</p><p>“It’s seventy degrees out,” Damon pointed out. She pulled a face. “But, I have a fireplace in my bedroom, which I <i>might</i> let you convince me to light.”</p><p>She smirked and walked a little closer to him. “Interesting proposition…” she said. “But I think you should get me a glass of water before we continue the tour. Because I am very thirsty and I know you want to be a good host. Where’s the kitchen?”</p><p>“You’re a very demanding guest,” he said. He cocked his head. “This way.”</p><p>“Yes, so unreasonable, requesting life-sustaining water,” she said drily. She took his arm, surprising him again. But he liked her nearness, her warmth, her breast pressing into his bicep…</p><p>“You didn’t request, you <i>ordered</i>,” he said.</p><p>“Only because you didn’t <i>offer</i>,” she shot back. “Clearly, you need some prompting in the manners department.”</p><p>She settled herself on a stool pulled up to the island in the kitchen while Damon got her a glass of water.</p><p>“You’re right,” she said. “I do love your house.”</p><p>Damon shrugged, leaning on his forearms on the island, across from her. “It’s a place to come back to.”</p><p>“Spoken like someone who has always been filthy rich,” she replied, a slight smile on her face.</p><p>Stefan appeared in the doorway. “Damon, you’re home,” he said. Catching sight of Damon’s guest, he added, “And you brought a friend.”</p><p>“Yes, I did,” Damon said, smirking. “This is my new friend.”</p><p>Stefan was staring intently at him. “Damon – ”</p><p>“Relax, Stefan, I’m not breaking any rules,” Damon replied casually.</p><p>The woman looked back and forth between them. “Is this your boyfriend?” she asked Damon, sipping her water.</p><p>Damon snorted, but Stefan was still staring at him.</p><p>“This is my brother, Stefan,” he said.</p><p>“Oh. You two come off like an old married couple,” she said cheerfully. “It’s cute.”</p><p>Stefan glanced at her, then back at Damon. “Damon –”</p><p>Damon held a hand out to his guest. “You haven’t seen the upstairs yet, m’lady.”</p><p>She laughed and took his hand. “Lead the way, good sir.”</p><p>Stefan watched them go, looking concerned.</p><p>***</p><p>The woman gave a little scream of delight when she saw Damon’s bedroom. “I’ve always wanted a four-poster bed!” she cried. “You are such a lucky jerk.”</p><p>“Check out the bathroom,” Damon said, smirking. She whirled around and sprinted in, touching the side of the tub longingly.</p><p>“Do you take baths like every single day?” she asked, sounding wistful. “I would, if I had a tub this size.”</p><p>“Most days,” Damon said. “Play your cards right, maybe I’ll let you use it.”</p><p>He’d come up close behind her and she turned around, smiling coyly.</p><p>“That tub looks big enough for two,” she said.</p><p>Damon stepped in even closer. “Oh, it is,” he said, the corner of his mouth quirking up into a smile. He leaned in and kissed her.</p><p>Immediately, she was kissing him back eagerly, sliding her fingers into his hair, melting against him when he put his arms around her. She was a good kisser, passionate and sure, which delighted Damon. He loved kissing. Too many people seemed to see it as a means to an end.</p><p>When he pulled back, she stepped away, surprising him. But she was still smiling.</p><p>“Strip,” she said. “Slowly. I want to see you.”</p><p>Damon found himself complying automatically, watching her watch his fingers as he unbuttoned his shirt. She was flushed and bright-eyed, her expression eager.</p><p>“I kind of can’t believe you’re doing that,” she said conversationally. “Actually, what I really can’t believe is that I <i>asked</i> you to do that.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>She shrugged, shaking her head. “I’m never like this. Not out loud. I’d like to be, but…I should be nervous as hell right now. Especially since you’re way too hot for me.”</p><p>“That’s bullshit,” Damon said, pausing at his right cuff button and starting to move towards her.</p><p>She backed up a step. “I didn’t say stop.”</p><p>Damon resumed undressing. “Well, don’t <i>say</i> shit like that, then.” It came out more heatedly than he’d thought it was going to.</p><p>“All right, all right,” she said. Damon shucked his shirt, watched her eyes move appreciatively over his chest and arms. The scrutiny gave him a warm, pleasant buzz of arousal. “In any case. It’s awesome and I love feeling this way. It’s just weird. Ever since we left the coffee shop, I’m not afraid to say whatever I want to you.”</p><p><i>Not afraid.</i> Damon paused with his fingers on his fly. The compulsion was still in effect. He hadn’t meant…this is what you got when you didn’t <i>choose your words</i>.</p><p>“Keep going,” she said sternly.</p><p>Honestly, though, he liked her this way.</p><p>“Just one quick question,” Damon said. “If someone suggested, say, jumping off the roof of a tall building for no reason, or walking out into traffic…does that sound like something you’d be willing do?”</p><p>She raised an eyebrow at him. “Um, no. That would be idiotic.”</p><p>Not afraid, but not stupid. Good enough, at least for now. Damon slowly unzipped his fly and eased his jeans off his hips before stepping out of them. He never wore underwear. The woman’s gaze made him feel exposed, in a way simple nudity usually didn’t. It was like she could see straight through to his soul. It was intimidating, but it made his cock twitch.</p><p>She stepped up close to him then, running one hand over his chest and stomach and cupping his balls in the other. His cock started to lengthen and after a moment she ran her fingers up and down it in a maddeningly light touch. She didn’t stop, though. After a couple minutes he was fully hard and biting back the urge to beg her for more.</p><p>She looked up at him, and he inclined his head down towards her, hesitant to just take what he wanted. She brought her mouth to his and they kissed passionately. Damon couldn’t suppress a small moan when she pulled away.</p><p>She curled her hand around his cock and stroked it a little more firmly now, but still far too lightly to do more than tease him. The fingers of her free hand trailed over his stomach and hips. She was looking at him again, examining him up close. Damon <i>really</i> like watching her look.</p><p>“What would you say if I told you I was a vampire?” he asked suddenly.</p><p>She grinned up at him. “I would say that you have excellent roleplay ideas which are just to my taste.”</p><p>“So, you like vampires?”</p><p>“World of yes.”</p><p>Damon touched her jaw lightly, making sure her eyes stayed on his face. “Watch this.” He let the hunger he felt for her come to the surface, the whites of his eyes flooding with blood. Her eyes widened. He pulled back his lips to reveal his fangs. She gasped and released his cock, using the now unoccupied hand to punch his arm.</p><p>“You <i>jerk</i>! Why didn’t you tell me?”</p><p>“I’m telling you now,” he pointed out, fangs retracting and eyes returning to normal. She looked disappointed.</p><p>“No! Where’d they go?” She put her arms around his neck and pressed to him, tipping her head back and to the side. “Don’t you want to bite me?”</p><p>Damon stared at the long line of her neck. Fuck yes, he did. He leaned down and pressed his lips against her neck, feeling her pulse quicken. It would be so easy, and she <i>wanted</i> it. But…he had so enjoyed the direction the afternoon seemed to be going.</p><p>“You’re not going to make me earn it?” he murmured against the soft shell of her ear.</p><p>Her breath caught and she chuckled, looking up at him with a grin. “Oh, I see…Go lie down on the bed.”</p><p>Damon complied. This wasn’t really how he’d planned the day. He was going to find someone, seduce them – he’d never planned to give up control. But the way she’d started ordering him around…He watched her take off her clothes – everything but her panties – drinking in the sight of each newly revealed inch of skin.</p><p>When she was done, she joined him on the bed and straddled his hips, running her hands up and down his chest. She gave him a quick kiss – far too quick – then looked down at him musingly.</p><p>“I think,” she said, after a moment, “that I would like to tie you to the bedposts.” She grinned. “How does that sound?”</p><p>Damon nodded quickly. “Check the box under the bed,” he said.</p><p>“I really do like this house,” she said, hopping off the bed.</p><p>After a few minutes of rummaging and setup Damon found himself with his arms securely tied to the bedposts. He made a frustrated noise when she straddled him again and he remembered he couldn’t touch her this way.</p><p>She laughed and briefly squeezed his hands, then trailed her fingers down the sensitive undersides of his arms and slowly up his chest. She bent down and Damon angled his face up towards his, but she didn’t kiss him, instead bringing her mouth to his chest. She kissed and licked and nuzzled his skin, dragging her teeth over his sensitive nipples, making him gasp.</p><p>With gentle fingers on his chin she turned his face to the side and kissed his neck softly. Without warning she bit down and sucked hard. Damon groaned; the pain was all pleasure.</p><p>“How long will the bruise last?” she asked after a moment.</p><p>“Not long,” Damon said. She kissed the damaged skin and then turned his face to hers again. Damon stared into her eyes, which were full of eagerness and enjoyment. He was almost disappointed when her gaze only lasted a moment and she kissed him.</p><p><i>Almost</i> disappointed. Her tongue in his mouth made him whine with need, hips working as his cock sought friction. She pulled away after a moment and Damon whined again.</p><p>“No, come back,” he said, trying that thing he did with his eyes which usually brought people running.</p><p>She only gave him a mischievous, one-sided smile. “You’re awfully demanding,” she said, dismounting him with a sweep of her leg. She settled down on her side next to him and wrapped a hand around his cock. Damon moaned as she stroked him lazily.</p><p>“Faster,” he panted. She let go of his cock and swatted his stomach.</p><p>“You’re a real brat, you know that?”</p><p>Damon nodded, smirking. She laughed and started stroking him again. After a moment she did start going faster, and then faster still. Damon shut his eyes and bit his lip, lost in the feeling. But just as he started to feel his orgasm building, she stopped. His eyes flew open.</p><p>She was smirking at him. “My turn,” she said.</p><p>“My turn wasn’t over,” Damon complained.</p><p>She only kept smiling as she straddled his face. Damon moaned and started licking her eagerly, wishing his hands were free so he could put a few fingers inside her. Although it wasn’t what he most wanted to put inside her. He’d be hard-pressed to say if that was his cock or his fangs.</p><p>He slid his tongue inside her a few times and felt her clenching around him, which made his hips work and his wrists strain against the ropes again. It didn’t take long before she was coming with a soft cry, pressing against his face.</p><p>She hopped off him quickly and he heard her running water in the bathroom. In a moment she was back, wiping his face with a damp cloth and looking very pleased. She put the washcloth back in the bathroom when she was satisfied that he was clean.</p><p>“You could have kept going,” he told her when she’d come back.</p><p>“I could do a lot of things,” she said airily, and kissed him hard. He moaned as he kissed her back, then louder when she gently tugged on his cock a few times. She released him far too soon and he almost gave a frustrated growl, but caught the look on her face and stayed quiet.</p><p>She smiled, looking pleased. “You did a good job,” she said. Damon tried to pretend he didn’t feel a warm glow of pleasure at the words, but it was useless.</p><p>“And so,” she continued, “you get a reward.” She held her wrist up to his lips. Damon felt the blood flooding his eyes immediately, his fangs against his lower lip. She pulled her wrist away and he looked at her, surprised.</p><p>“I don’t mean to tease,” she said. “But I forgot to ask: will you have any trouble stopping when I tell you to? Be honest.”</p><p>Damon shook his head. “I’ll do whatever you want,” he said.</p><p>She smiled. “I guess you have long practice?”</p><p>Not that he’d often practiced that much self-control, but Damon knew he could stop when he wanted to. It wasn’t like he was injured or starving. He nodded.</p><p>“How old are you, anyway?” she asked.</p><p>“I was turned during the Civil War,” he said.</p><p>“Wow…” She looked fascinated. Damon wondered if she was going to ask more. People got curious, about how it had happened…He’d made up some entertaining lies, in the past, but oddly, he felt like he’d rather tell her the truth.</p><p>But instead, she just held her wrist to his lips again. Damon moaned and bit down, trying not to go too deep. She inhaled sharply at the pain as her blood spilled hot and sweet over his tongue. He sucked in a deep draught and then drank slowly, only letting the blood trickle in.</p><p>“Enough,” she said, after a couple minutes, voice breathy. Damon groaned and tore his mouth from her wrist, letting his head fall back on the pillow. She disappeared again, but was back in short order with her wrist bound tight with gauze.</p><p>“I can heal that for you,” he said. His head was spinning from the pleasure of her blood, which he could still smell, the scent seeping through the gauze.</p><p>“Later,” she said, and kissed him with surprising tenderness. “I don’t want to wait.” She straddled his hips and slid down onto his cock. Damon made a needy sound, trying to thrust up into her. He wanted to throw her down and fuck her senseless or at the very least touch her skin, but his hands were still maddeningly bound.</p><p>So he had to let her set the pace, which was really just as fun, in its own way. And he could look up at her, see her blissed out expression as she rode him.</p><p>“Fuck, Damon,” she gasped. He took in her every noise and move; when had a human last been so unafraid of him? <i>You know why</i>, said a little voice in the back of his head, but Damon ignored it. There was no reason for her to be afraid of him. He wouldn’t hurt her.</p><p>After what felt like years of delicious, infuriating rolls of her hips, she reached up to the bedposts and started to untie his wrists. Damon watched eagerly, but she hesitated.</p><p>“Are you going to be good?” she asked, looking down at him with a severe expression.</p><p>He nodded quickly. “Yes, m’lady.”</p><p>She grinned, and he grinned, and the ropes were quickly undone. Damon ran his hands up her thighs the second they were free, glorying in her warm skin, her shape. When she leaned down to kiss him, he buried the fingers of one hand in her hair, wanting to keep her that close forever, it felt so good.</p><p>“Sit up,” she instructed, and Damon complied. He bent his head down to taste her breasts and she leaned back in ecstasy, murmuring his name. And then she was bouncing on his cock, going faster but still too slow for him to come.</p><p>“Can I show you a trick?” he asked. She nodded, grinning, and then her expression turned to pure pleasure as he pressed his thumb to her clit and vibrated it at vamp speed. She gasped and her movements quickly became erratic. When she came, she cried out even louder than she had the first time.</p><p>She put an arm around his neck and lay her head on his shoulder, breathing hard.</p><p>“Good trick,” she gasped, with a soft laugh.</p><p>Her aftershocks were driving Damon crazy. He pressed kisses to her neck, letting a whimper escape his lips.</p><p>“Please…” he said, tone pleading.</p><p>She laughed again. “Yeah,” she said. “Lay me down and go as fast as you want.”</p><p>He had her on her back in a second, her limbs wrapped tightly around him. He tried for finesse for a minute but soon gave it up and just thrust desperately into her, which, by the sounds she made and her nails raking down his back, was not something she had a problem with.</p><p>When he knew he was getting close – all too soon, after all that buildup – Damon propped himself up on his elbows and kissed her desperately. She kissed him back hard, hand in his hair, and Damon moaned against her mouth as he came, pulsing deep inside her.</p><p>He broke the kiss, finally, and collapsed on his side, pulling her close, feeling relaxed and blissed out. He thought they might doze, but she kept kissing his chest, neck, shoulders; smoothing his hair and stroking his skin. And then kisses on his face; a quick one on his lips, then on his cheeks, forehead, eyelids, and she was still stroking his hair. It felt crazy good, but it struck Damon as odd.</p><p>“What are you doing?” he asked finally.</p><p>“Aftercare, silly,” she said. She delivered one last kiss to his temple before settling in his arms and confining herself to petting the back of his neck.</p><p>“Oh. Right.”</p><p>“Don’t you usually have aftercare, after scenes?”</p><p>“I don’t really bottom much. Not since my ex.” It was true; and Damon realized with a jolt that he’d let this woman take control without a second thought. It hadn’t been <i>that</i> intense, as kink went, but…</p><p>“She – or he – didn’t do aftercare?” She sounded scandalized.</p><p> “Yeah, not really her thing,” Damon said.</p><p>She was looking into his face with a concerned expression. “I’m sorry,” she said. “That’s poor dom behavior.”</p><p>Damon shrugged, avoiding her eyes. “We all have crappy exes,” he said.</p><p>She kissed him gently, but didn’t ask anything further about Katherine, which was a relief. Although Damon wondered if he might have told her more, if she had.</p><p>“Would this make you feel any better?” she asked instead, tilting her head to the side and flaunting her neck. Damon stared down, wanting nothing more than to sink his fangs into her and taste that sweetness again.</p><p>But…</p><p>“I have to do something first,” he said, taking her face in his hands and turning it back to him. She looked puzzled, but didn’t fight him, staring into his eyes. Damon cursed himself and hoped he wasn’t about to ruin everything.</p><p>“Don’t be unafraid, or afraid,” he said carefully. “Feel whatever you would naturally feel.”</p><p>Her eyes dilated and a look of confusion passed across her face. She pulled away from Damon, backing up a foot or two on the bed, staring at him with a wounded expression which felt like a knife in his stomach.</p><p>“What did you do to me?” she whispered. She was wrapping her arms around herself, drawing her legs up, hiding her body from him. The sight made Damon want to eat vervain.</p><p>“I compelled you,” he said. “Back at the coffeeshop. I swear, I didn’t mean to. I only wanted you not to be afraid to come home with me. But then you said you wouldn’t normally be able to do what we were doing, that you’d just want to, and we were having so much fun…”</p><p>“Compelled me?”</p><p>Damon swallowed. “It’s a trick vampires have. We can tell people what to do and they’ll do it.”</p><p>She looked horrified. “Like mind control?”</p><p>Damon pressed his lips together. “Yeah,” he said finally. “But I swear I would have taken it off sooner if you hadn’t said you liked how you felt…And I took it off now, and I’m…” His throat worked for a second as he tried to get the words out. “I’m sorry.”</p><p>She was sitting up and wrapping a blanket around herself, not looking at him.</p><p>“I was never going to hurt you,” Damon said. “I mean – I didn’t, did I?”</p><p>“No,” she agreed, distantly.</p><p>“And you believe me?” he said, hopefully. “That I would have taken it off sooner if I’d thought you didn’t want to do this?”</p><p>She looked into his eyes then, face sad and troubled. She nodded slowly. “I believe you.” She looked away again. “I should go home.”</p><p>Damon’s stomach dropped, but he only nodded and gathered up her clothes, moving at human speed so he wouldn’t startle her. She disappeared into the bathroom with them, moving out of sight.</p><p>Damon got dressed and was waiting for her when she came out. She looked pale but composed, and she could still hardly seem to look at him.</p><p>“I’ll drive you home,” he said.</p><p>Her brow creased.</p><p>“Or,” he said quickly, “I can call you a cab, if you want.”</p><p>She looked into his eyes again with a searching expression. Damon waited, staring back, hoping she’d find whatever it was she was looking for. Finally, she nodded.</p><p>“You can drive me,” she said quietly.</p><p>***</p><p>After giving him her address, she was silent in the car, staring out the window.</p><p>“You want some music?” Damon asked at the first stoplight. “I’ve got satellite radio.”</p><p>“Thank you, but I think I prefer the quiet,” she said.</p><p>Damon swallowed and shut up.</p><p>They pulled up outside her house fifteen minutes later. She sat still for a moment, and Damon waited, hoping she was going to say something. But she only sighed and unbuckled her seatbelt.</p><p>“Here,” Damon said, awkwardly thrusting a piece of paper at her. She took it hesitantly.</p><p>“It’s my number,” he said. “In case you ever want to talk to me again, which I know you probably don’t.”</p><p>She looked into his eyes again, with that same searching expression, but then she only nodded and got out of the car.</p><p>Damon watched her go in, then sat for a minute, considering bashing his head against the steering wheel a few times to see if it improved anything about the situation or his personality. Finally he put the car in gear and pulled away.</p><p>***</p><p>That evening, Damon moped around the boarding house, sipping bourbon and trying to shake himself out of this funk. Why did he even <i>care</i> that this woman was upset? He’d known her for all of three hours. Sure, she was smart and funny and compassionate and the sex was mind-blowing and she liked being fed off of, but…</p><p>He drained his glass and poured himself another. <i>Three fucking hours</i>, he reminded himself. Damn it, he’d liked her. He’d already been thinking about seeing what she might be game for next time practically as soon as the sex was over.</p><p>He stared at his phone, but the only texts he’d gotten were from Stefan and Ric.</p><p><i>You are never, ever going to hear from her,</i> he thought. And why should he? As compulsion went, it had been pretty benign, but it was still compulsion.</p><p>He shouldn’t have given her his number. He should have just let her get out of the car and hopefully never run into her again. Better yet, he should have erased her memory of him. It would have been kinder; and easier, to know for certain there was no chance. But the thought of compelling her again made him feel sick. And he couldn’t stand to give up all hope.</p><p>But, it was a deeply stupid hope. Damon resolved to put her out of his mind.</p><p>***</p><p>Three miserable days later, Damon had completely failed to do so. Stefan, with his annoying intuition, had guessed what was going on and mildly suggested Damon talk to the woman. Damon yelled at him, then ended up telling him the whole story. After he was done, Stefan reiterated that he thought Damon should talk to her.</p><p>“Don’t be an idiot,” Damon snapped. “She hates me.”</p><p>“Did she say that?”</p><p>“No, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t.”</p><p>“Did she seem angry? She let you drive her home, right? I saw you leave together…or did you compel her again?”</p><p>“No, I didn’t compel her again, <i>Stefan</i>,” Damon said defensively. “That was the last thing I wanted to do.”</p><p>Stefan raised his eyebrows but didn’t comment. “I think you should go see her,” he said. “See if you have a chance.”</p><p>Damon grumbled and stalked out of the room to find more alcohol.</p><p>But Stefan’s stupid idea stayed with him, and finally Damon came up with something that just <i>might</i> convince her to trust him again. Maybe. At least, it seemed like a decent apology.</p><p>He had to go to a couple antique stores before he found what he was looking for, but he finally came across a sterling silver Victorian poison cuff bracelet with a garnet on it, which he thought seemed about right. He didn’t really know her taste, but if her reaction to the boarding house had been any indication, she would appreciate classy antique jewelry.</p><p>***</p><p>The next day, Damon went to her house and knocked on the door.</p><p>“Who is it?” he heard her call.</p><p>Damn millennials. No one just answered the door because no one showed up without a Facebook invite and twenty texts anymore.</p><p>No point in lying. “Damon Salvatore,” he said.</p><p>There was a long moment of silence; and then, encouragingly, she opened the door. The guarded look on her face was less encouraging.</p><p>“Hi,” he said.</p><p>“Hey,” she replied.</p><p>Would it make sense to ask how she was, like a person would? No, Damon decided. The direct approach was better. This was more than awkward enough already.</p><p>“This is for you,” he said, holding out a gift box. “It’s, uh…my attempt at an apology.” He tried to smile, but he could tell it was one of those smiles that was more like a grimace.</p><p>She took it slowly and opened the lid. “It’s beautiful,” she said, when she saw the bracelet. “But – “</p><p>“Let me explain,” Damon said quickly. “It’s not what it looks like.”</p><p>She cocked her head to the side, looking puzzled.</p><p>“I mean, it’s not <i>just</i> what it looks like,” Damon continued. “It’s a bracelet, but more than a bracelet.” He took it back from her – astonishingly, she didn’t seem to flinch when he reached out – and opened up the poison compartment to reveal the green herb nestled inside. She frowned in confusion.</p><p>“It’s vervain,” he said. “It protects humans from vampires. As long as you wear this, no vampire can compel you.”</p><p>“Oh,” she said quietly. “Right, I read about that. I’ve been reading up on vampires.” She took the bracelet back and studied it. Suddenly she burst out laughing.</p><p>“What?” It was Damon’s turn to be confused. He’d been prepared to be yelled at or have the door slammed in his face, but…</p><p>She couldn’t stop giggling. “It’s just…when I first saw what was in it, I thought you were giving me weed for some reason.”</p><p>Damon laughed, relief flooding him. “Would you have preferred that?”</p><p>She shook her head, wiping her streaming eyes. “Not at all,” she said. “This was very thoughtful.”</p><p>“Do you need help putting it on?” Damon asked. He wanted her to wear it, even if she told him to take a long walk off a short pier. He’d feel better knowing she had some protection.</p><p>She gave him a small smile and handed the bracelet back to him again. “Sure.”</p><p>She held out her left hand. Damon clasped it on her, letting his fingers brush her wrist. He realized she had a large Band-Aid on it and turned her arm over, frowning.</p><p>“I was supposed to heal this for you,” he said.</p><p>“It’s healing fine,” she said quietly. He glanced up at her.</p><p>“What about the rest of you?” He grimaced. “Hate me?”</p><p>Her fingers closed lightly over his hand. She shook her head.</p><p>“But you never want to see me again, right?”</p><p>“That’s not it.” Her face was flushed and she looked like she was trying to speak, but finally just shook her head.</p><p>Damon swallowed. “It’s weird, we barely know each other, but…I missed you.”</p><p>Her expression was heartbreaking. “I – missed you, too,” she said. It sounded like she was forcing the words out.</p><p>Damon reached out slowly and put a hand on her face, brushing his thumb against her cheek. She sighed, staring intently into his eyes. He leaned in slightly.</p><p>“Can I…” She nodded fast. Damon kissed her gently, still afraid she was going to bolt. But she only kissed him back – hesitantly, but willingly, he thought.</p><p>When he pulled back, though, she looked shaky.</p><p>“I – I still need some time,” she said quickly. “I don’t – it’s not that I think you’re going to hurt me, or that you’re trying to trick me.” She touched the bracelet on her wrist, dropping his hand. “This means a lot. And it helps. I just…” She looked up at him beseechingly.</p><p>Damon swallowed his disappointment. “It’s fine,” he said. “Call me when you want. Or text, or whatever.” He did his best to smile at her before turning and walking quickly back to his car, afraid that if he stayed too long, he might just throw her over his shoulder and take her home so he could try again to explain things right.</p><p>***</p><p>A couple infuriating days later, Damon got a text one evening from an unknown number. He frowned at his phone but then saw that it was from the coffee shop woman.</p><p><i>Hey</i>, he wrote back immediately, eschewing bullshit cool rules. He saved her number, hoping it wasn’t a burner phone.</p><p><i>Can we talk?</i> was her next text.</p><p><i>Your place or mine?</i> he wrote back.</p><p>She wanted his house. Damon hoped that it wasn’t because she knew he had to be invited in and wanted to keep her apartment safe. Not that he would blame her if it was.</p><p>She arrived half an hour later, looking nervous and gratefully accepting his offer of a drink.</p><p>“Can we go up to your room?” she asked, when the whiskey was poured. Damon blinked, surprised, but brought her upstairs.</p><p>She walked around his room for a moment, looking at the art and sipping her drink. Damon watched her silently, afraid to push her. The last thing he wanted was to spook her.</p><p>Finally, she took a deep breath and turned around. “I still miss you,” she said abruptly. Damon could hear her heart pounding.</p><p>“I do too,” he said quickly, before he could accidentally come out with something self-deprecating that might make her rethink this. “Miss you.”</p><p>She smiled, very slightly, and took another drink. “I would…” She swallowed nervously. Her eyes were wide, her expression painfully vulnerable. “I’d like to keep seeing you. I mean. Only if you want to, of course.”</p><p>Damon took a step towards her, but she tensed, and he stopped. “I want to,” he said.</p><p>She nodded, looking relieved. She finished her drink and set the glass down on a side table. “Good,” she said. “That’s great.”</p><p>The fingers of her right hand went to her left wrist and she took off her bracelet. Damon frowned. Too big a gift, too soon? He’d have to make her understand that she needed the protection of the vervain, and it wasn’t like it had been <i>crazy</i> expensive anyway…</p><p>She stepped up close to him, looking nervous and excited. “Okay,” she said. “Compel me.”</p><p>Damon shook his head slightly in an attempt to clear it. “What?”</p><p>“Compel me.” She sounded surprised, like she hadn’t expected him to question this. She gave a sly one-sided smile. “I know how much you liked me when I was ordering you around. And there’s no way I can be that confident, without compulsion. I’ve hardly even done it with serious S.O.s, and you’re – new, and…” She shook her head slightly, still smiling. “<i>Insanely</i> hot. It’s intimidating.” Her smile faded. “Maybe one day, I can find that again without compulsion. If, you know, this ends up lasting and I’m not saying it will or that I’m taking anything that far ahead for granted, but anyway, if it did, maybe I could find it again on my own, but...definitely not now.”</p><p>Damon swallowed, touching her cheek. Her eyes brightened and she lifted her chin slightly, looking full into his eyes with an expectant expression. Damon thought about the relaxed, self-assured way she’d doled out commands; how sincerely <i>fun</i> it had been, for both of them. And she knew, now, and she was asking, wasn’t she? Why shouldn’t they enjoy each other?</p><p>“I’m not going to compel you,” he heard himself say, and breathed with relief as an ache in his stomach he’d only kind of noticed suddenly eased.</p><p>She pulled away, looking surprised and disappointed. “Oh,” she said. “Okay. I’ll…go, then. I guess.” She turned her back to him and moved back to the table, picking up her bracelet and putting it on again.</p><p>Damon grabbed her elbow and she turned, looking wary. “I don’t want you to leave,” he said. “Unless you don’t want to be here.”</p><p>She blinked. “But…the way I was, before…that’s why you liked me, isn’t it?”</p><p>“Did you forget I wanted you to come home with me way before I compelled you?”</p><p>She shrugged. “I know, but I figured the only reason you wanted a second go was the other stuff.”</p><p>“I did like how you were then,” Damon said. She looked down, and Damon hurried on. “But it wasn’t <i>why</i> I liked you. I just…like you.”</p><p>She looked up again and Damon seized his moment, leaning in and kissing her passionately. For all her protestations that she couldn’t be confident sans compulsion, she kissed him back without hesitation. She made a small noise against his mouth that went straight to Damon’s groin. He slid his arm around her back, pulling her tightly against him.</p><p>She was breathing hard when he broke the kiss. He kept his arm around her waist, hoping she wouldn’t want to leave again, and brushed her hair back with his free hand. She smiled, almost laughing.</p><p>“This time is going to be very different from the last time,” she said in a warning tone. Damon grinned, heart leaping. He liked the sound of “this time.”</p><p>“I like it all kinds of ways,” he said. “After a dozen plus decades, you really start to want variety in your sex life.” He smirked, doing his eye-thing at her, and she laughed for real.</p><p>With vamp-speed he swooped her up into his arms. She laughed again, startled, but seeming happy. Damon deposited her on the bed and held himself up on his arms over her, looking her up and down.</p><p>“Are you going to make me pay for last time?” she asked, smiling.</p><p>“No, probably not,” he said absently. “I just want to get to know you.” Damon realized what he’d said a second after the words were out of his mouth, and he looked quickly into her face. She looked up at him with wide eyes, mouth slightly open. He shrugged.</p><p>“I owe you an apology, anyway,” he said. He leaned down and kissed her hard. Her fingers slid into his hair as she arched up towards him.</p><p>“You already apologized,” she said quietly, when he let her up. “<i>And</i> gave me a present. You don’t have to keep going.”</p><p>“Mm, kinda do,” Damon said, kissing her neck and décolletage before pushing up her shirt and helping her pull it over her head. He kissed her stomach and the tops of her breasts gently, pleased to be able to explore her body like this. He hadn’t really gotten to last time.</p><p>He unhooked her bra and kissed and tongued her nipples to hardness, paying close attention to her breathing and heartrate as well as the sounds she made. When he thought she’d had enough of that, Damon kissed his way down her stomach again and then eased her jeans and panties down her hips and off her entirely. After considering for a second, he stripped quickly, enjoying her watching, although he didn’t make much of a show of it this time. When he rejoined her on the bed, he smoothed his hands up her legs and then kissed and nuzzled the insides of her thighs. Her breath caught when he touched his tongue to her entrance, entering only the tiniest bit before licking slowly around the lips. He kept this up for long minutes, only occasionally circling her clit, wanting to tease her. From her moans and breathy sighs, this was a good idea. After awhile he slid a couple fingers into her, stroking her g-spot. His cocked throbbed as she squeezed around them, but he kept going; this was <i>nearly</i> as good as fucking her would be.</p><p>Finally, when her hips were working and she was moaning almost continuously, need clear in her tone, Damon slipped another finger inside her and started alternating lapping and circling her clit. She gave a soft cry, and when he started vibrating his fingers and tongue she gasped, hips bucking, moaning as she came.</p><p>“Can you go more than once?” Damon asked.</p><p>“Sometimes,” she said breathlessly. He kept going, wringing a second and a third orgasm out of her before she touched his head, half-laughing.</p><p>“No more,” she said. Damon kissed her inner thigh again and sat up a little reluctantly, wiping his mouth. She sat up immediately, throwing her arms around him and kissing him passionately. Damon kissed her back, grinning.</p><p>“Was that part of your apology?” she asked.</p><p>“Oh, no. That was all for me.” Damon smirked as she laughed. Her hand slid down his hip and towards his cock, but Damon grabbed her arm and pulled it away.</p><p>“Nuh-uh,” he said, in a playfully warning tone. “It’s my show this time.”</p><p>He grabbed her other arm a little below the wrist, mindful of the bite marks still in evidence, and pushed her down onto the bed again. She fell back willingly, laughing, wrapping a leg around his waist. Damon looked her up and down slowly. She got quiet, her eyes wide.</p><p>“Uh oh,” she said.</p><p>“What?” Damon asked, raising an eyebrow and trying to smirk, but feeling a little concerned.</p><p>“I just remembered how <i>stupid</i> hot you are,” she said, shifting slightly. Damon held her wrists down a little harder, staring into her eyes.</p><p>“So are you,” he said fiercely.</p><p>She blushed, looking away. Damon let go of one of her arms so he could take her chin in his hand and turn her face back to his.</p><p>“Listen to me: you have <i>nothing</i> to be insecure about,” he said.</p><p>She smiled gratefully and nodded, but Damon could tell she didn’t truly believe him. Well, that was fine. He would just have to show her.</p><p>He let her other wrist go to balance on his forearm, then leaned down and kissed her, slow and thorough, for a long time. When she was arching up against him again and he kept unconsciously rocking his hips so his cock rubbed against her thigh, he broke the kiss.</p><p>“Ready?” he said, his face still just an inch or two from hers. “Still want to?”</p><p>She nodded fast, breathing hard, seeming unable to speak, but when he hesitated and looked into her eyes, she grabbed the back of his head and kissed him quickly.</p><p>“Yeah,” she said. “Please.”</p><p>So, Damon gently pushed her knee to the side and positioned himself at her entrance. He’d thought he would tease her, and himself –barely put the head in and rub just inside her; the sensation would be amazing for them both – but he only managed it for a moment before he had to give in to his need and slide his full length into her in one smooth stroke, biting his lip so he wouldn’t cry out and ruin his cool.</p><p>She moaned loudly, wrapping her arms and legs around him and clinging to him as he started to move slowly.</p><p>“Good?” he murmured in her ear. She laughed giddily.</p><p>“Very good,” she said. “You?”</p><p>Damon buried his face in her neck and tried to think how to answer that without freaking her out. “Great,” he said finally. “Great.”</p><p>She dropped kisses on his shoulder and when he started rocking faster into her, she gasped and bit down, which felt so good that Damon’s rhythm stuttered and he paused to kiss her hard.</p><p>He drank in her breathy moans as he fucked her, going faster or slower as the mood took him. He found himself saying ridiculous things.</p><p>“I want to take you on a real date,” he murmured into her ear.</p><p>“Okay,” she gasped. “Where?”</p><p>“Fancy restaurant.”</p><p>“Okay!”</p><p>And a couple minutes later:</p><p>“What’s your favorite TV show?”</p><p>She laughed. “Too many to list. I’ll tell you some on our date.”</p><p>And then:</p><p>“How many siblings do you have?”</p><p>She turned his face to hers and pressed their foreheads together, still panting as he thrust into her. “Later.”</p><p>“You already know about my brother! It’s not fair.”</p><p>She laughed again and kissed him thoroughly. “Later, Damon.”</p><p>Damon grumbled, but it was completely for show. When he started getting close he thrust faster and she raked her nails down his back, harder than the last time. It tipped him over the edge, sooner than he’d meant to come, but he just shut his eyes and let it happen, shuddering into her. As soon as his head had stopped spinning, he rolled onto his side and pulled her to his chest, stroking her hair and back.</p><p>She sighed happily, nuzzling his chest and holding onto him tightly.</p><p>“I love this,” she said. “Partners going soft inside me.”</p><p>“But not as much as the other part, right?”</p><p>She laughed. “They’re both great in different ways.”</p><p>“But that part’s still better. Right?”</p><p>He could hear the smile in her voice. “I guess it must be.”</p><p>Damon smiled, too, and kissed her temple.</p><p>They were both asleep a few minutes later.</p><p>***</p><p>They’d been dating for a couple months. Damon was constantly surprised by how well it was going. This woman seemed to genuinely enjoy his company, which was miraculous, and he certainly enjoyed hers. Sometimes he thought her confidence issues were getting better, but they still reared their ugly head every so often, when she would make some remark about how he couldn’t possibly find her attractive. Of course, he was also good for a lot of self-deprecating remarks about how insufferable it was to be around him. She shot those down just as fiercely as he did her quips about her looks, and Damon thought that, all things considered, they were pretty well matched.</p><p>He only hoped that one day, she’d get comfortable enough with him to top him again. There were moments, like when she was drunk, where her self-consciousness dropped away, and he caught sight of that confidence. He loved seeing her so secure and happy. But it hadn’t lasted enough for anything like a repeat of their first time.</p><p>One day, after a quick but highly enjoyable sex session, they were cuddling. Damon kissed her neck. She made a soft noise and turned her head a little, baring her neck further.</p><p>“You want to?” she asked softly.</p><p>Damon inhaled sharply and touched her face, turning her chin till she was looking in his eyes. In all this time, he’d never drunk from her neck. Her wrist, yes – and, on one memorable occasion, the femoral artery in her inner thigh – but she hadn’t offered her neck, and he hadn’t asked. Damon had thought it was maybe never going to happen, even though she liked it when he fed off her. He’d thought that perhaps what had happened the first time she offered her neck to him had colored that experience forever.</p><p>“Why would you trust me to do that?” he asked now, tone a little harsher than he’d intended.</p><p> “You’ve never given me a reason not to,” she said. She held up her wrist; the one with the bracelet. “And I know I’m not compelled. But, compulsion or no, I always wanted you to.”</p><p>He searched her eyes intensely, still not entirely sure he should trust this. After a minute she looked away, face falling.</p><p>“It’s okay if you don’t want to,” she murmured.</p><p>“<i>What</i>?” Damon demanded. She shrugged.</p><p>“You uncompelled me that first time, when I asked if you wanted to drink me,” she said. “And now you seem…” She paused. “Just, it’s okay if you don’t want to. If my blood isn’t that good.”</p><p>“Not that – ” Damon closed his eyes for a second, trying to compose himself. He opened them again, but she was still avoiding his eyes.</p><p>“Why would I have been drinking from you all the time for two months if I didn’t like it?”</p><p>She shrugged again. “Politeness?”</p><p>“Look at me,” he said. She obeyed, expression vulnerable and troubled.</p><p>“It is <i>not</i> that I don’t want to,” he said. “I want to more than you…” He swallowed. “More than you could possibly understand. I just…I didn’t think <i>you</i> would want to.”</p><p>“I do,” she said tremulously. “So much.” Damon gazed into her eyes again – he had to be sure – and then he kissed her, hard, before pulling her tightly to him again. He pressed his lips softly to her neck, forcing himself to be gentle. She sighed in pleasure, turning her head to expose her throat to him again.</p><p>Damon’s eyes flooded with red and his teeth lengthened. He tried to ignore his racing heart and fought back against his instinct to tear into her flesh and drink until she was dead. He’d gotten a lot of practice, these past weeks, but it was so easy to drain someone from the neck…</p><p>He suppressed a growl, kissed her neck again, and then sank his fangs into her. She gasped and squeezed him even tighter. Damon’s eyes rolled back in his head as the first drops of her blood touched his tongue. He pulled his teeth free of her flesh and clamped down around the wounds immediately with his mouth, not wanting even a drop to be spilled. He moaned as he fed, making himself go slowly.</p><p>He savored the taste of her blood as he drank her for long minutes. His cock was still inside her, and he got hard again almost immediately, but he barely moved in her, not wanting to be distracted. After the initial pain, she relaxed in his arms, murmuring his name and occasionally dropping a kiss on his shoulder.</p><p>Finally, reluctantly, Damon pulled away, pressing a hand to the wounds immediately. He bit into his other wrist and held it to her mouth, watching her take a short drink, as she almost always did after he fed on her. Something about that connection – her feeding him, him healing the damage he’d done, their blood mingling – always got to him. But, it was somehow magnified this time, he thought, as she opened her eyes, licked his wrist, and smiled at him.</p><p>“Good?” he asked.</p><p>“<i>So</i> good,” she assured him. Damon kissed her gently.</p><p>“I love you,” he said, before the need say it got buried, like it already had a few times over the last couple weeks, driven underground by his fear and guilt.</p><p>Her mouth dropped open and her eyes filled with tears.</p><p>“Please tell me that’s happy crying,” Damon said, trying to smile.</p><p>She laughed and kissed him. “Yeah,” she said. “Yeah.” She kissed him again. “I love you, too.”</p><p>Damon grinned, folding her in his arms. “Good. Probably a terrible idea, but – “</p><p>“Shut the fuck up with that shit.”</p><p>He grinned some more and kissed her hair. A throb between his legs reminded him that he was still hard. He thrust shallowly into her a couple times, making a pleased noise.</p><p>She tensed and Damon froze, afraid something was wrong. He’d upset her by drinking from her neck, he’d fucked it up with the “I love you” after all, he’d – </p><p>“What do you think you’re doing?” she asked. Her tone was firm, but playful; not truly angry at all. Damon’s heart beat a little faster.</p><p>“Sex with you?” he said.</p><p>“I don’t remember giving you permission for more sex.” She looked up at him, grinning. “On your back.”</p><p>Damon rolled so he was on his back, keeping his arms around her so that when he was in position, she was straddling him. He let her go as she sat up and she immediately grabbed his wrists, pinning them to the bed.</p><p>“I think,” she said, smirking, “that it’s time I reminded you of your manners.”</p><p>Damon found that he was grinning uncontrollably. “Past time,” he agreed.</p>
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